An American Dynasty by Jon D. Zimmer

An American Dynasty is
the story of one family’s rise from the extreme poverty of the Great
Depression to a dynasty of wealth and politics.

They are a
family filled with empathy for their fellow countrymen as Jack Gilbert
struggles with the paradoxes of the Great Depression: "Why are people
hungry when there is enough food for everyone? Why are so many people
without shelter when we can provide shelter for everyone? Why is there
such an abundance of ignorance when we have the ability to educate
everyone?"

They are a family of lust: "…they realize they are
naked in a business office on a Sunday morning. Mary epitomizes the
moment by getting up from the sofa and dancing naked around the office.
Jack is in hysterics."

They are a family of extreme passion.

They
are a family that knows death: "He sees one more German still alive…he
raises his arm with the pistol in his hand and shoots him twice in the
head."

They are a family fearful for their country’s future: "He
has one final thought before entering politics. Freedom is not lost, it
is stolen, and the thief is absolute wealth.

An American Dynasty by Jon D. Zimmer

Jack Gilbert had a dream of going to college, to make a difference in the world, but it was the 1930s and the depression stole everyone’s nest eggs, and brought powerful men to their knees and even to their death. Jack begins a journey across the country that will begin the saga of his family and shape their futures for generations to come.

His original journey from the heartland to California and family brought young Jack face to face with the down-trodden, those who have lost everything and the monsters who prey on them. He witnessed human brutality, death and fear. Jack also learned how to manipulate and control situations and in the name of street justice had done things he will never forget, telling himself it is for the greater good and he had no choice. This is the story of An American Dynasty by Jon D. Zimmer.

Follow Jack through his early years struggling to survive and live the American Dream when others were folding up. Careful business moves, calculated risks and a “feeling” that things would go his way made him one of the country’s most influential men, but it won’t save his family from the sins of wealth and power. In spite of their causes and charities, they still become victims of excess, while using money to buy loyalties and cover ups.

Discover each generation’s strengths and weaknesses, their greed, lust and the games the wealthy play when having enough food to eat is not an issue.

Jon D. Zimmer has the potential for an epic saga surrounding one family’s rise to wealth and political clout as each generation grows up and leaves the safe cocoon of their ideals when they must face war and life outside the family wallet. Even good people can become twisted in ever so slight ways, but like a steel rod, twist it enough times and it will become a misshapen caricature of itself. A wonderful plot, great emotional strings, but there was too much detail for the little things, too much repetition of a small action, as if the readers are being force-fed the story to see it as the author sees it. The imagination of a reader lost in a story is phenomenal and the freedom a book allows for interpretation is a gift from the author. It is the difference between giving an order and asking for something. I wanted to visualize my own scenes and I found I could not.

I received this copy from Jon D. Zimmer in exchange for my honest review.